Copycat Cracklin’ Oat Bran

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It’s official…I’m definitely over the hill. Forget sugary cereal with marshmallows or soggy frosted flakes. In the morning, you’re much more likely to find me sipping my coffee and munching on some Cracklin’ Oat Bran (we call it COB for short). It’s not too sweet, it’s filling, and I can pretend that it’s kind of healthy–hey, it has bran in the name, right?!?

Unfortunately, there’s only one store in my neighborhood that carries COB, and it’s nearly $5 a box. This means that I only buy it when it’s on sale or when I make the trek to Target. It’s a special treat.

This was all well and good until the 12-year-old bottomless pit decided that he liked it too. He gobbled up the entire box in just a few days!

After I recovered from my surprise (have you ever met a kid who LIKES bran cereal?!?), I realized it would save lots of time and money if I could figure out how to make copycat Cracklin’ Oat Bran in my kitchen…and it was easier than I expected.

When you buy it from the store, COB is simply a hyper-cinnamon-ed granola mixture formed into adorable little “O” shapes for easy snacking.

Our copycat Cracklin’ Oat Bran has plenty of healthy ingredients (oats, coconut, honey) and none of the bad ones in the boxed cereal (vegetable oil, corn syrup). The only down side is that you don’t get the cute little “O” shapes. Although I guess you could stamp them out with a Play-doh tool if you really wanted to…

Copycat Cracklin’ Oat Bran

Ingredients

4 1/2 cups rolled oats

1 cup flour

1/2 cup cornstarch

2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut

2 Tablespoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup honey

1/3 cup coconut oil, melted

2 eggs, lightly beaten

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325F.

Whirl the oats in a food processor or blender until they become oat flour. Pour into a large bowl and add the other dry ingredients. Mix everything together, ensuring there are no lumps. You want to make sure that there are no lumps now, because after you add the wet ingredients there will be nothing but lumps.

Add the wet ingredients and mix until everything is moistened. It will look like the crumb topping on coffee cake.

Spread the mixture onto two large cookie sheets, breaking up any large chunks. You want each piece to be the size of a grape (or smaller) so everything cooks evenly.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely and then store in a zip-bag or quart jar.

Enjoy with milk, as a snack with your coffee, or (best of all) on top of ice cream.

Whirl the oats in a food processor or blender until they become oat flour. Pour into a large bowl and add the other dry ingredients. Mix everything together, ensuring there are no lumps. You want to make sure that there are no lumps now, because after you add the wet ingredients there will be nothing but lumps.

Add the wet ingredients and mix until everything is moistened. It will look like the crumb topping on coffee cake.

Spread the mixture onto two large cookie sheets, breaking up any large chunks. You want each piece to be the size of a grape (or smaller) so everything cooks evenly.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely and then store in a zip-bag or quart jar.